unaligned

The European Court of Human Rights is set to announce whether it will hear a Dutch case against Russia over the downing of flight MH17 in 2014. All 298 people on the Malaysia Airlines flight were killed when it was shot down by a Russian-made missile fired by Moscow-backed Ukrainian separatists. The Dutch government argues that Russian disinformation about Moscow's role in the incident is a violation of the relatives' human rights. Russia denies the allegations. The decision will be read out at 14:30 local time (13:30 GMT). The Boeing 777 was flying from Amsterdam to Kuala Lumpur when it was hit by a surface-to-air missile in July 2014 during a conflict between pro-Russia rebels and Ukrainian forces in the Donbas region of Ukraine. The Netherlands argues that Russia played a key role in the air disaster and the case hinges on whether or not Moscow had "effective control" over the area of Ukraine where the missile was fired from. At this stage, the ECHR will only rule on whether the criteria has been met for it to deal with this application. Even if it decides to hear the Dutch case, it could be years before a ruling is issued. However, if the ECHR issues a guilty verdict against Russia, Moscow could be obliged to pay damages to the victims' relatives. Last September, Russia stopped being party to the European Convention on Human Rights, but the court can still deal with claims against Russia regarding actions up until that date. In November, a Dutch court at the Schiphol Judicial Complex found three men - two Russians and a Ukrainian - guilty of murder in absentia for their part in the downing of MH17. The court concluded that the missile had been fired deliberately to bring down a plane, even if the target had been military rather than civilian. The three men were sentenced to life in jail but are all thought to be in Russia. Since Moscow condemned the verdict as scandalous and politically motivated it is extremely unlikely that they will be handed over to face justice.<br/>

Scandinavian long-haul low-cost carrier Norse Atlantic Airways is to open services between Rome and New York JFK in mid-June. The airline is to operate to the US gateway from Rome’s main Fiumicino airport. Rome will be the fifth capital city that Norse will connect to JFK, after the airline previously unveiled plans to operate from Oslo, Berlin, London and Paris. Norse uses a fleet of Boeing 787s. It says its new daily Rome connection will begin on 19 June, barely a year after the carrier began its first flights. “Addition of Rome to our network will provide another gateway to Europe and strengthen our presence in New York,” states CE Bjorn Tore Larsen. Norse also operates selected transatlantic routes to Los Angeles, Fort Lauderdale and Orlando.<br/>

Norwegian carrier Flyr has reached tentative agreements to operate charter services for the summer season. The airline says it has signed a letter of intent with an undisclosed partner covering flights which will operate from May to October this year. CCO Thomas Ramdahl says the carrier “looks forward to reaching a final agreement”, and says the pact demonstrates “confidence” in the airline. The potential deal is valued at NKr90m ($9.2m). Flyr has also agreed a summer charter service worth at least NKr30m with an unidentified entity. Ramdahl says it will involve a “significant number” of flights. “This is a testament to our service and product,” he adds. Flyr, which operates a fleet of Boeing 737s, has been re-organising its strategy in order to cope with seasonal demand fluctuation. Although it has 12 aircraft – a mix of 737-800s and Max 8s – it heavily reduced their utilisation for the winter. It transported 1.6m passengers last year, with an average load factor of 74%, and is aiming to increase this figure to 80-90%. Flyr has undergone a recent change of senior management, while dealing with the winter burden, having been affected by the pandemic in the early part of 2022 and inflation pressures later in the year. But new CE Brede Huser remains optimistic about the airline’s prospects for the spring and summer.<br/>

UAE’s flag carrier Emirates has announced the completion of ground engine testing for one of its GE90 engines on a Boeing 777-300ER with 100% sustainable aviation fuel (SAF). The trial was carried out to evaluate the GE90 engine’s capability to run on the specially blended 100% SAF, without any changes to aircraft systems, and to ensure that the performance of the engine is not impacted. It was also aimed at ensuring that there was no special maintenance procedures required on the Boeing 777-300ER or GE90 engine to run. The test was carried out on two engines, with one running on 100% SAF and the other on conventional jet fuel, to better analyse the fuel system´s behaviour and performance. During the test at the Emirates Engineering Centre in Dubai, the aircraft first underwent a standard pre-inspection process, after which the stationary operating testing started by first operating the Honeywell 331-500 auxiliary power unit (APU) on 100% SAF. The APU was loaded fully with SAF to start the engines, and the left engine was exercised through its full power range, using the same settings to be utilised for the experimental flight. After the simulation was completed, the fuels were isolated in separate fuel tanks to maintain segregation of test fuels.<br/>

Kazakh regional carrier Qazaq Air is looking to introduce jets to its fleet in order to expand its network. The airline’s management has visited Dublin to discuss options with a number of possible lessors, aircraft manufacturers and financial firms. Qazaq Air has not disclosed its specific requirements. But the airline – based in Astana, the country’s capital – has five De Havilland Dash 8-400 turboprops. It operates primarily domestic services, with a handful of connections to nearby international destinations. “To increase passenger traffic and expand the route network, the company plans to purchase jet aircraft,” it states. “The increase in the fleet will make it possible to launch [more] international flights and provide passengers with affordable tickets to new destinations.” Qazaq Air emerged in mid-2015 having been established with the support of Kazakhstan’s sovereign wealth fund Samruk-Kazyna.<br/>

Singapore Airlines’s Indian venture has shelved plans to start direct flights to the US following disruptions in deliveries of Boeing’s 787 Dreamliner aircraft. “We were discussing US at one stage,” Vistara CEO Vinod Kannan said at a virtual press meet Tuesday. “We have had to put that on hold after the fact that 787s are going to be interspersed and not coming in at the same time.” Vistara, a joint venture between the Tata Group and Singapore Air, is expecting to induct its remaining four Dreamliners by March 2024, he said. While the first of those four jets will be delivered by April, Vistara is waiting for clarity from Boeing on the exact delivery timeline, Kannan said. Boeing got the green light from US regulators to restart deliveries of 787 jets in August. While the jetliner’s deliveries were largely paused in late 2020 after flaws were discovered, the concerns weren’t viewed as a safety hazard and airlines were allowed to continue operating their existing 787s. Vistara will rejig its plans to operate routes that require only fewer aircraft such as London, Paris and Frankfurt, he said. The airline will add frequencies and connect those international destinations to other parts of India, perhaps Mumbai, he said. Operating daily flights from India to the US is “resource consuming” and for Vistara, the staggered deliveries of 787 jets will create a “big gap” in the widebody aircraft it needs to fly to the destination, Kannan said. The airline currently has three 787 aircraft in its fleet and one of them is a used plane that is on lease for three years, he said. Vistara, which broke even for the first time in the quarter through December, aided by the expansion of its international network, will be merging with Air India as Tata plans to revamp its faltering aviation business. Air India’s top advantage among local carriers is that it operates non-stop flights to the US without having to transit in the Middle East. <br/>

Virgin Australia Holdings plans to interview lead underwriters starting in February for a return to public markets as soon as this year, according to people familiar with the matter. Australia’s second-largest airline and its owner Bain Capital will interview banks from the end of next week for joint lead manager roles assisting the company to list again on the Australian Securities Exchange, said the people, who asked not to be named while discussing confidential matters. A listing would come less than three years after Virgin Australia collapsed and was removed from the ASX. Its becoming sufficiently profitable to consider offering shares to the public is a sharp reversal that underlines how lucrative the post-pandemic travel boom has been for airlines. A Bain spokesman declined to comment on specific timing, and directed Bloomberg to a statement from the firm last Monday that it would “shortly seek advice on a future IPO” of Virgin Australia. “Prior to Covid, Virgin Australia had a proud history as a public company,” Bain Capital partner Mike Murphy said in the earlier statement. “While there is currently no set timetable, at some point in the future, if any IPO does happen, Bain Capital would welcome public market investors joining us as shareholders.” Financial results lodged with the Australian Securities and Investments Commission for the fiscal year ending June 30 showed an operational loss of A$386.7m ($270.2m). Yet by September, chief executive Jayne Hrdlicka was saying the Australian airline had made enough financial progress that a listing was a possibility. Bain plans to keep a significant shareholding in a future IPO of the company, Murphy said.<br/>